When should I resign.

LegacyUser

I'm commencing the final month of my probation period and I've come to the conclusion that the position and organisation are not a good fit for me. The role itself differs greatly from the role I applied and interviewed for. My contract states that I can terminate my contract with one weeks notice during my probation period. A new project is about to commence and the project management team has assigned me as the lead person on the project. A number of meetings have been scheduled for the start of next month, to kick start the project and my presence is required at these meetings, naturally.

Given the above, I'm thinking that it would be best to make the powers that be aware of my decision to leave. Is it too soon to let them know that I am planning on leaving at the end of my probation period? I'd like to leave on good terms, as I may come in contact with them again. I am slightly concerned about my relationship with my boss when I hand in my resignation. He is a real company man and I've witnessed some very sour interactions between him and other members of staff who've left, members of staff who are not on my team, over the past few months. I've never spoken to him on a one-to-one basis regarding my probation period etc, which is one of the reasons why I am leaving but I have dealt with him frequently in relation to work, naturally. Given the fact that I'm on his team, I'd expect to be on the end of some very negative feedback and reactions.

So, in short, do you think I should let them know now or hold off until the last week and resign as per the terms and conditions of my contract.

OMM 0000

Difficult question to answer.

The decent person in me says to give them as much notice as possible so they can find a replacement, but the jaded no-good-deed-goes-unpunished side of me says to give the minimum notice, especially when considering your boss is a prick.

Victor

Not before you have your new job.

why not try talking to yr boss about the role, yr probation and yr concerns before resigning.

TheSheriff

Worth chatting to your boss about your role? Even if it is to see if it could be changed more in line with what you interviewed for.

This would at the very least flag that you are unhappy, and put it on their radar that you might be itching to move.........

Then if nothing changes leave as per the terms and conditions of your contract. Best of both worlds.

LimeFruitGum

Are you interviewing with other companies, OP? It sounds like you are on track to pass probation if they are planning projects around you.
Is there an option to move to another department later? As a manager, I would rather someone told me they weren’t happy in their job and were planning to move on, so I can make arrangements for backfill. People leave, it is a pain in the neck, but it happens. Try and line something up ASAP. I think it would be neater to quit at the end of probation if at all possible.

LegacyUser

Firstly, I think it's important to note that I've work available to me.

Deleted User wrote: »

why not try talking to yr boss about the role, yr probation and yr concerns before resigning.

I've tried twice. Tried to initiate this conversation after month two and a few weeks back. These guys spent months trying to fill this role before they found me. They been trying to fill another role since January, with no joy.

On joining the COO, CFO, CHRO and countless other senior people came to me on my first week, saying how happy they were to finally find someone suitable. I talk to these people on a weekly basis. Half thinking about saying something to one of them, which could help resolve the problem but it could create a bigger problem with my manager. It'd reflect very badly on him.

Interested Observer

Resign when you have another job secured and not a moment before.

skallywag

My first instinct agrees with the advice that you should wait until you have a new position secured. I also agree that you should have a chat with your boss to see can anything be done.

If the role itself is really very different from that you applied for, then it's completely reasonable to expect that you may not be happy with it. If your boss is any way reasonable he will also acknowledge this.

gandalf

Victor wrote: »

Not before you have your new job.

This!!! You never resign before you have the next role lined up.

BrokenArrows

You have two options.

1. Being loyal to the company and telling them that you are going to quit and you dont want to take on a new project when you are going to quit anyway.

Down side is that they might just tell you to leave now with 1 weeks notice and there is nothing you can do about it.

2. Dont tell them until you find a new job.

Downside you leave them without a project lead which obviously kinds screws them.

skallywag

BrokenArrows wrote: »

...Downside you leave them without a project lead which obviously kinds screws them...

If I was in the employer's position myself I would certainly be looking for a high level of confidence that an employee is not going to walk out the door after the notice period, before assigning them to such a task.

The OP mentioned that they have never had a a one-to-one concerning how the start in the company has been, I would consider this as a major failing on behalf of the boss, showing very poor people / risk management. You can usually sit down with an employee for a 5 minute informal chat, and will be able to take away a good feeling about how that person is feeling in the new position. I would imagine that he is going to get his wrists slapped if the OP leaving takes anyone by surprise.

LegacyUser

Many thanks for your replies. Firstly, I think it is important to note that work isn't an issue for me. I have work lined up for the beginning of September. Changing jobs again is a pain though.

Since my last post, I tried to engage with my manager on the matter. He ignored my mails and told me that he didn't have time when I asked him face to face. Asked me to focus on timelines for the new project, even though the requirements are nowhere near complete and he is also very eager to get me to review some work that his understudies have done, which has gone wrong. He said that resolving the latter, his cock-up to be brutally honest even though he is blaming the juniors, is more important than HR work.

Have to be honest and say that I am a little annoyed by their lack of interest. It took them months to fill this position, so I don't really understand their attitude. Given their lack of interest in engaging with me on the matter, I am thinking about sticking to the terms of my contract and resigning with one week to go. If and when he whinges about the lack of notice, I am going to remind him about the one-to-one meeting requests. My wife thinks that I should approach my resignation in this manner.